Street-sprinkler.



No. 645,l59. 'Patented lflar. l3, I900;

- E. BALF. I

I STREET SPRINKLER.

(Application. mm m. 20, 1899.)

( No Model.)

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65W, A 7- 64M.

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a fine spray; and it further consists in the UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

EDWARD BALF, OF HARTFORD, CONNECTICUT.

STREET-SPRIN KLER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 645,159, dated March 13, 1900.

Application filed February 20, 1899.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known-that I, EDWARD B'ALF, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Hartford, in the county of Hartford and State of Connecticut, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Street-Sprinklers, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description,whereby any one skilled in the art can make and use the same.

My improvement relates to the class of apparatus commonly used on city streets to distribute or sprinkle water on the street-surface; and the object of my invention is to provide an apparatus of this class in which the water or other fluid shall be delivered onto the street-surface in a spray rather than in a series of streams or in such quantities as to render the surface muddy and slippery without effectively laying the dust.

To this end my invention consists in the combination of awheeled tank having sprinkler-pipes and mechanism for creating an airpressure on the surface of the water, and particularly adjacent to the sprinkler-pipes, so that the water or other fluid is distributed in details of the several parts making up the apparatus as a whole and in the combination of such parts, as hereinafter described, and more particularly pointed out in the claims.

Referring to the drawings, Figure 1 is a view in side elevation of a sprinkler embodying my invention with parts broken away to show construction. Fig. 2 is a detail view, in side elevation, of'the body of the cart with parts out in section. Fig. 3 is a detail view, on enlarged scale, of the outlet-valve at the base of the sprinkler-tube.

In the accompanying drawings the letter a denotes the body of a cart, which is constructed as a tank to hold water and is provided with wheels I) and the usual tonguec as a means of enabling the cart to be drawn over a street-surface. Any desired means of propelling the cart, however, may be employed. An inlet-opening through the wall of the tank is provided with a valve (1 of ordinary construction, and through this inlet the tank is filled with water. In suitable position, usually on the lower side and at the rear, a sprinkler e is attached to a deliverypipe f, into which water is discharged from Serial lie-706,107- (No model.)

the tank and through the valve g. This valve g has a cylindrical valve-body 9, located in an enlargement of the delivery-pipe f of the chamber, with which it connects, the openings g through the wall of this valve-body permitting the free flow of water when the valve is opened. The valve is cylindrical and hollow, with a series of ports at difierent heights. The upper series of holes is smaller in area than the lower series, so that as soon as the valve lifts from its seat the height of the valve above the seat determines the quantity of water which may be discharged in any given time through the valve. A valve-rod h extends up through the body of the tank and is connected at the upper end with one arm of a bent lever 1;, the other end being connected with a rod or cord 2', which extends forward to a point conveniently within reach of the driver of the cart.

In a convenient position, preferably on the side of the tank, an air-pump 7c, of any ordinary construction, is formed and connected, as by means of a sprocket 7t and chain with a sprocket l, fixed to turn with the wheel a of the cart. A tube m leads from the airpump to the reservoir m, in which compressed air may be stored, and the pipe m leading upward from the air-reservoir, then turns downward and extends to the rear, where it enters a chamber 'IL, located within the sprinkler-pipe e and extending its whole length. The holes 6 in the wall of the sprinkler e are arranged so that holes 47/ through the pipe at register with each other, the pressure of the air delivered through the pipe blowing the water out through the opening e in a spray, thus distributing the water evenly and without forming puddles.

An air-pipe 0 extends from the crown part a to which the inlet-valve d is secured, to the air-pipe m and it has a valve 0, by means of which the passage of air through the pipe 0 may be controlled. A three-way valve 10, forming a connection between the pipes m and 0, enables the flow of air from the reservoir m to the sprinkler and sprinkler-tank to be controlled. This valve in one position also connects the pipe 0 with the open air. The valve is usually thrown into this position while the tank is being filled through the inlet-valve d.

The operation of my improved sprinkler is as follows: The forward motion of the cart turning the wheels operates the air-pump and fills the reservoir with compressed air. The water which has been stored in the tank is then released in the desired quantity by lifting the valve 9 and opening the valve p at the same time. The valve 10 having been opened causes the water and air to be delivered from the sprinkler-pipe forcibly enough to form a spray. In order to enable the tank to be refilled, the pipe 0 is opened to the outer air by turning the valve 19, and as the water fills into the tank the air may be expelled through that outlet, which is closed as soon as the tank has been filled; or if the tank is being filled from a hydrant where the water is delivered under a considerable pressure the valve 19 may be so set that the air in the tank a will be compressed and forced into the compression-tank m, thus producing sufficient air-pressure to operate the sprinkler as soon as the cart is started and before the air-pump has been operated long enough to charge the tank. It will thus be seen that this valve 19, connected and operated as described, will form a convenient means of controlling the relative pressures of the water and air at the dischargingpoints of the sprinkler-pipe.

I claim as my invention- 1. In combination in a street-sprinkler, a Water-tank with sprinkler-pipe, an air-pump carried and driven by the forward movement of the vehicle, an air-reservoir connected to the pump, pipes connecting the air-reservoir and a perforated pipe located Within the sprinkler-pipe, pipes connecting the air-reservoir and the water-tank, means common to both systems of pipes and adapted to control the pressure of either, and a variable valve adapted to control the flow of water from the water-tank to the sprinkler-pipe.

2. In combination in a street-sprinkler, a water-tank, a delivery-pipe, a variable valve controlling the flow of water into the deliverypipe, a perforated sprinkler-pipe, a perforated air-tube located within the sprinkler-pipe,- connections between the perforated air-tube and between the water-tank, and a compres sion-tank, and means common to both sets of connections adapted to control and vary the relative pressures of the water and air as they are delivered.

3. In combination in a street-sprinkler, a water-tank, a delivery-pipe, a variable valve having a perforated body with a series of ports of different size, a perforated sprinklerpipe, a perforated air-tube located within the sprinkler-pipe and means for controlling the flow of air and water respectively. p

4. In combination in a street-sprinkler, a water-tank, a delivery-pipe, a perforated sprinkler-pipe, a perforated air-tube located within the sprinkler-pipe with the openings registering with the openings of the sprinklertube, means for forcing air through the airtube and a variable valve controlling the flow of water into the delivery-tube, and a valve mechanism adapted to vary the relative pressures of the air and water at the opening of the sprinkler-pipe.

EDWARD BALF.

Witnesses:

ARTHUR B. JENKINS, WILLIAM H. BARKER. 

